TheDaddy
The Fly
After all the debating about "third masterpieces" in the ATYCLB thread I thought this would be a good topic for debate - which is U2's "first masterpiece?"
Is it Boy or October with their signs of early promise (yes I've contradicted myself there) or is it War with it's striking rock energy or UF with it's ethereal use of atmospheres or is it indeed The Joshua Tree?
For me U2's first masterpiece is UF. It is such a step up from the first 3 records (although War and Boy are both very good records) - Lanois and Eno really helped the band make some beautiful music. Along with Pop, UF is U2's most underrated record. The atmospherics are really beautiful and the band haven't made a record like it since - the closest they have come to the atmospheres of UF are parts of Zooropa and Passengers and the very closest they have come are The Ground Beneath Her Feet and in particular Stateless on MDH soundtrack. Maybe New York and Grace on ATYCLB also borrows some of the atmospheres on UF but are not as good. Electrical Storm and The Hands that Built America are also very close in sound to the atmopsheric rock of UF. But other than that the band haven't made another record like UF which leads me to wonder why it isn't given as much press as JT and AB. Like JT and AB it has some anthems, namely Pride, The Unforgettable Fire and Bad and also some gorgeously beautiful and understated album songs like A Sort of Homecoming, Promenade and MLK.
It is such good mood music and it is also refreshing for "mood music" to be rock music at the same time which is what UF is.
So yes to my ears, UF is U2's "first masterpiece." I'm glad they haven't tried to make an album like it again because it would end up being an imitation but it's nice to still hear UF in songs like Stateless, TGBHF, Electrical Storm, Hands and New York.
UF to me is U2's "first masterpiece" - what is yours?
BTW, I also include AB in the "first masterpiece" category for U2 fans who prefer the 90s.
Is it Boy or October with their signs of early promise (yes I've contradicted myself there) or is it War with it's striking rock energy or UF with it's ethereal use of atmospheres or is it indeed The Joshua Tree?
For me U2's first masterpiece is UF. It is such a step up from the first 3 records (although War and Boy are both very good records) - Lanois and Eno really helped the band make some beautiful music. Along with Pop, UF is U2's most underrated record. The atmospherics are really beautiful and the band haven't made a record like it since - the closest they have come to the atmospheres of UF are parts of Zooropa and Passengers and the very closest they have come are The Ground Beneath Her Feet and in particular Stateless on MDH soundtrack. Maybe New York and Grace on ATYCLB also borrows some of the atmospheres on UF but are not as good. Electrical Storm and The Hands that Built America are also very close in sound to the atmopsheric rock of UF. But other than that the band haven't made another record like UF which leads me to wonder why it isn't given as much press as JT and AB. Like JT and AB it has some anthems, namely Pride, The Unforgettable Fire and Bad and also some gorgeously beautiful and understated album songs like A Sort of Homecoming, Promenade and MLK.
It is such good mood music and it is also refreshing for "mood music" to be rock music at the same time which is what UF is.
So yes to my ears, UF is U2's "first masterpiece." I'm glad they haven't tried to make an album like it again because it would end up being an imitation but it's nice to still hear UF in songs like Stateless, TGBHF, Electrical Storm, Hands and New York.
UF to me is U2's "first masterpiece" - what is yours?
BTW, I also include AB in the "first masterpiece" category for U2 fans who prefer the 90s.